STAIRS TO HEAVEN 천국의 계단
by mistressinwaiting
Summary: -In which, "people who love each other end up reuniting..."  BASED ON THE KOREAN DRAMA
1. Chapter 1

-In which, people who love each other end up reuniting

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**Yay! My 32nd fanfic! You see, I was watching the Korean Drama _Stairway to Heaven _again, and I just got totally inspired! (And that's saying a lot since I've been so bored lately.) Anyway, I'm trying to promote it somehow . . . if you can call it that. And I wanted to this to be a oneshot, but . . . yeah, it didn't work so well because there's too much to type out (and I'm a bit too lazy). In the end, this might be a threeshot. So . . . please enjoy!**

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Stairs to Heaven

Chapter One

During the war, a lot had happened. Many people lost their lives, and tension formed. Alliances were made and broken, but this story is not about the shinobi war. It's about the story afterwards, about Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuga Hinata.

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Once the war had ended, the seemingly impossible happened—Uchiha Sasuke had come back to Konoha, and the people greeted him with opened arms. But this was to be expected. After all, he had helped Naruto take down the person responsible for everything, Uchiha Madara. And though the war was over, there was no celebration. The shinobi nations had lost many of their valuable citizens and shinobi, one being the Hokage herself. Tsunade had died, shielding the Uchiha whom her apprentice loved from the Elders. She died smiling, but she did not die leaving Konoha to those old geezers. No, she left Konoha with a will. Her two apprentices, Shizune and Sakura, whom have learned much about politics from her as well as their jutsu, would be co-rulers until the next Hokage (Uzumaki Naruto) finally took the position.

Needless to say, the Elders were not happy about this, but the two apprentices had the backup from their generation of shinobi and from the prominent clans of Konoha as well, for the Elders' plan of destroying the Uchiha clan had come to light and the other clans did _not_ take it well. And so, the Elders lost all of their power and shut themselves away, ashamed of this transaction.

After this, Shizune took up the job of taking care of Konoha's inner problems while Sakura took up the job of Konoha's diplomatic situation. Of course, they both taught Naruto on the side to make sure that he wouldn't have any trouble in the future. And what of the Uchiha and the Hatake? Well, Sasuke stayed by his teammates' sides as the leader of Sakura's bodyguards (which were his old Team Hebi) while Kakashi became the ringleader of Shizune's sentry.

It was about a month later when Hinata and Naruto met up again. Why so long? Well, he was busy with his missions and his tutoring sessions while she was busy not only with her missions but with her clan too. You see, the Hyuga heiress had reached the age (**eighteen**) where not only she was _considered_ old enough to get married but also the age where she _had_ to be betrothed. Now, it was a coincidence that they had met again on that day because Naruto too had to select a future wife just as a sort of image-boosting thing. It was also then that he remembered her confession to him and the fact that he hadn't given her a reply yet. And so, he brought her to the top of Hokage mountain and told it to her straight.

"I like girls like you, Hinata-chan, especially you!" he said, smiling. "But we shouldn't take this too fast, 'kay? At least, let me prove to you that I can be an able boyfriend before we decide anything. And then I'll give you a present to show you my promise to marry you."

Her reaction . . . she fainted, her face red and her heart soaring to the heavens.

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It was only a month later that Naruto had to leave on a three-year diplomatic mission to Kumogakure. Sakura had suggested it to help Naruto's transaction to Hokage position go smoothly, but she only _suggested_ it—not commanded him to—because she knew about his relationship with Hinata. If she could, she would've brought the Hyuga with them, but her clan wouldn't allow it. Therefore, she left the decision to Naruto who let Hinata decide for him whether or not he'd go.

Hinata was upset, yes, but she told him to. After all, this wasn't just about them—he still had Konoha to think of. And so, she told him to go with Sakura and Sasuke.

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She was crying. She was late to see him off. She cried, thinking that she had missed her chance to see him one last time. But then, the gates opened, just enough for one person to walk into the village. It was Naruto who smiled when he saw her there. She asked why he came back, and he told her he still had a present to give her. He asked her to close her eyes. When she opened them, she found a necklace around her neck. It was a simple piece of jewelry, but it was enough to cause tears to form again in Hinata's eyes.

He smiled again, laughing a bit and wiping away her tears. He'd come back to marry her, he promised her. He'd come back, just for her.

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He was returning home early. He had been gone for two years already, but he chose to come back just to see her again.

Shizune sent a messenger to the Hyuga's main household the day of his arrival, and Hinata ran to greet him. But they didn't meet. Naruto came back to the village looking for her, worried. He had found a picture he had given Hinata of them together on the floor of the surrounding forest, a smear of blood on it.

The whole village went on high alert, searching for the heiress. Shizune sent an urgent message to Sakura, telling her to come back. Perhaps someone was targeting Naruto or someone on the diplomatic party but ended up taking Hinata. That seemed like the best explanation of Hinata's disappearance. However, there was no evidence of such a situation—only Hinata's blood on that picture.

Days stretched into weeks which stretched into months. And during this time, no one noticed that Hyuga Neji had disappeared too.

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It was five years later when Naruto's coronation had its date set. Everything was supposed to go smoothly when Naruto came back from his mission but, on the way back home, he caught sight of a girl who looked a lot like his late girlfriend. He followed her, chased her, but he lost sight of her.

He was _very_ late, and they had to reschedule the coronation. Sakura and Sasuke scolded him, asking him why he'd be late to the very event that he had waited all his life for. He told them the truth—he had seen Hinata again.

Both his teammates quieted then. _This again._ They knew Naruto regretted ever going on that diplomatic mission, and they knew he regretted coming home early that day. If he hadn't then Hinata would probably be…

Sakura sighed, taking Naruto's hand. She knew it was hard on him, that he couldn't forget the girl he wished he could have spent more time with. But she had to snap him back to reality. Hinata was _gone_, and he was engaged to Hanabi now. He couldn't be thinking about the past or he'd hurt the new Hyuga heiress.

Naruto nodded his head, not wanting to upset the pregnant Uchiha matriarch.

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It was a month later, three weeks after his decision of postponing his coronation for a while so that he could forget about his dead girlfriend and only two weeks after Sakura had given birth to the Uchiha heir, that the Hinata look-alike showed up again. He chased her again and, this time, he caught up to her, screaming her name. The girl was frightened by his loud yells and, when Sasuke and Sakura's bodyguards restrained the blonde, she ran.

"You two saw her this time, right?" Naruto asked, grabbing his teammates' arms. He desperately wanted them to stop telling him he was only dreaming. He was so desperate, in fact, that he was crying. "Hinata… She . . . she was right _there_! It was Hinata! It was really her…"

And needless to say, neither Sakura nor Sasuke could say that what they saw was an apparition or just Naruto's hallucination.

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He found the girl again. Her name was Shizuka, and she was different from the Hinata he knew. She was much more outgoing and a lot sassier. He got to know her more during that month, and he found out she had lost her memories during a fall and that a guy named Ichiru (whom Naruto never met) was the one who saved her and took care of her all these years. He convinced her to come to Konoha with him, to see if she could be his missing girlfriend.

She agreed, after days of persuasion and despite Ichiru's protests. She returned with Naruto to Konoha, shocking his friends with her uncanny similarity to the late Hyuga heiress. He brought her to the Hyuga household, and Hiashi almost fainted at the sight of Shizuka. He was delighted to have her in his house. Hanabi, on the other hand, was more than reluctant to acknowledge the girl. After some time, Naruto swayed her to allow Shizuka to see her sister's old things. But it didn't help. Shizuka didn't remember a thing.

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It was a week later that the girl claimed to be Hinata. No one believed her. After all, she had claimed time and time again that she wasn't the Hyuga heiress. Why the sudden change? Even Naruto could not find the heart to believe her since he was trying his best to give up on and forget about Hinata. In the end, it was Ichiru who convinced the soon-to-be Hokage of Shizuka's honesty because, you see, Ichiru was none other than Hyuga Neji.

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Hiashi welcomed his daughter back, hugging her tightly and crying. She cried too. She had been gone for five years. She had missed out on so much. Those who were there apologized to her, regretting that they did not believe her. However, the merriment was short-lived. Hanabi was ready to run out the door, only to be stopped by Sakura. When asked what was the matter, the younger Hyuga heiress just cried and said that the man who lived with Hinata all those years had called and threatened to hurt her if she didn't give Naruto back to her sister.

Though Naruto found Hanabi's claim to be strange, Sakura had no choice but to side with the younger Hyuga. After all, it was Naruto who had agreed to his engagement to her. He couldn't back out of it now especially because it was in two days and all the ninja nations were already anticipating it.

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The next day, Hanabi and Naruto were to go shopping for the girl's engagement dress. And somehow, Naruto had gotten Hinata to come along. Sure enough, Hanabi was _not_ happy. And needless to say, she wasn't happy when Naruto had forced Hinata to try on one of the dresses he picked out, asking her to wear it the next day.

And on the day after, the engagement went as bad as the shopping trip for the younger of the Hyuga sisters. Everything seemed to have gone as everyone had expected. Naruto came in with Hanabi, and he seemed happy enough. Things went downhill from there on. When the ring bearer presented the rings, Naruto just smirked and took out another ring from his pocket. He left Hanabi standing there and walked to the side where her sister was, surprising everyone and asking the girl to marry him.

Hinata didn't know what to say. She wanted to say yes, she so desperately wanted to, but then…

"Hyuga Hinata!"

Everyone's head whipped around to the entrance. Neji was trying to get through the door but the guards prevented him from doing so. They pulled him out of the room. It was then that Hinata stood from her seat and ran after them.

"Hinata-chan…"

But she stopped when she heard Naruto call out her name. She turned around to glance at him. She almost cried. He looked so hurt, but she knew she couldn't say yes, and so she shook her head and turned down his proposal.

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She waited. She waited the whole night at the station, waiting for her cousin to walk out of the doors. She almost fell asleep when the doors to the interrogation room opened and Neji walked out.

She ran to him, asking if they had hurt him and asking why they wanted to interrogate him. He gave her the cold shoulder and continued on his way as if he didn't see her. However, she persisted to keep asking her questions. She was so worried about him. But then he yelled at her, saying that it was _her_ engagement, asking why she didn't say yes.

Hinata was angry now too. She screamed back at him, saying, "Yes, it was my engagement! I could've said yes! I _wanted_ to say yes! But I said no and came for you! I was so _worried_, and this is what I get? It was _my_ engagement, Neji! I could have gotten it over with and be happy for the rest of my life! It was my engagement! Why did you come if you were going to act this way?"

In reality, Neji wanted to tell everyone the truth—the truth behind Hinata's disappearance way back when and the part Hanabi had played in it. But he couldn't tell Hinata. No, even _she_ didn't know the kind of heart her sister had.

And so, instead, Neji ripped off the pendant Hinata had given him and threw it on the ground. "Then go and be happy!" he yelled. "Why did you come after me if you were so miserable, huh? Why couldn't you just forget about me and say yes? You're so _stupid_!"

"_FINE_!" the girl shrieked. "You're the reason why I'm not even married yet! I'll forget about you! I'll forget _all_ about you! Leave! Go! Don't even come back! GO!"

But once her cousin was gone, Hinata's tears poured out of her eyes as she picked out the thrown out necklace. And unbeknownst to her, Naruto was watching from afar the scene that had just played out.

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**I hoped you enjoyed it! Please stay tuned for the next chapter! And while you're at it, here's a little preview! The chapter should be out before Chinese New Year (which is by the way FEB 3 2011).**

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_Hinata smiled with relief. But then the Hyuga heiress realized something. "Neji-kun, today was so strange. Today . . . it felt like Naruto-kun was right here besides me. And it still feels like he's right by my side."_


	2. Chapter 2

-In which, people who love each other end up reuniting

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**Yay! I got the chapter up! Sorry, I didn't keep my promise, but Chinese New Year was just busy, busy, and busy. And then I had my other fanfics, and I couldn't find time for this. Then there were projects and schoolwork, and I couldn't get out of anything to work on this fanfic, so . . . yeah, sorry. Also, just so you know, there is a TIMESKIP between the chapters, kay? (Cuz I told you I was somewhat promoting the Kdrama _Stairway to Heaven_ so I can't put _everything_ into this fanfic or you'll never watch it.) So, yeah, sorry again. And I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

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Chapter Two

Hinata ran out of the house, down the porch stairs and to the beach. It's been three days since she left Konoha with Neji, a week since she had found about her eye cancer. She had only told Neji and begged him to take her away again so that Naruto didn't need to see her die. But now . . . she missed the Hokage-to-be terribly.

Hinata turned around, trying to figure out the way back to Konoha. Neji was out on an errand, and he was the only one who knew his way around in this place. Hinata had no clue which way her home was. She decided to go east, but she was careless. She did not see the ice on the sand and slipped. She fell to the floor. In doing so, she ended up hitting her head. And when she lifted her head, her vision began to blur again as it did for days. But this time, there was this darkness that seemed to grow. She looked to the blue sky, but even that was pitch black. There was nothing but this black darkness.

She took off her glasses, rubbing her eyes, trying to clear them of any dirt, but to no avail. She still couldn't see a thing. And so, she cried. "Naruto-kun! I can't see anymore! Naruto-kun! _Naruto-kun_! I can't see anything anymore… Naruto-kun! What am I going to do?"

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Naruto ran as fast as possible to the place Neji had spoke of. He could finally see Hinata again. When she had disappeared with her cousin, she had left no note, but he knew _something_ was wrong—hell, he _knew_ something was wrong when she needed _glasses_. His worry had been confirmed when Neji had come to tell him that Hinata was losing her sight to the same disease that had killed her mother.

When he arrived at the beach, Naruto whipped his head around to a distant cry. He had finally found Hinata again.

"Naruto-kun! I can't see anymore! Naruto-kun! _Naruto-kun_! I can't see anything anymore… Naruto-kun! What am I going to do?"

Those words verified his biggest fear, and he ran to the girl who was on her knees on the snowy beach.

She grabbed his hands and cried harder. "Neji-niisan," she said, thinking it was her cousin. "What am I going to do? I can't _see_ anymore! Everything's so black, everything's so dark! I can't see a thing…" She started hitting him. "Why did you choose _now_ to come back? There's no way I can see Naruto-kun again! I already can't see anything else!" She wrapped her arms around. "What am I going to do? What am I going to do? I'm so scared! I'm so scared… What am I going to do, Neji…?"

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Naruto carried her back to the house she was staying at but didn't speak to her, afraid that she might be able to tell that it wasn't her cousin she was speaking to.

"Neji-niisan, why aren't you speaking to me?" she had asked. "Is it because I look weird now?" But she quickly dropped the topic. She grabbed his hands again. "Neji-niisan, promise me you won't tell Naruto-kun. You can't _ever_ tell him! Promise me! You've promised me, right?"

But Naruto couldn't find it in himself to hold back the tears. He walked away, trying to think about what to do.

"Neji-niisan!" Her voice gave every hint of the fear she held. "You're not going to _leave_ me, are you? Neji-_niisan_!" She moved to follow him, but she tripped over her own feet and fell.

It was at that point that the _real_ Neji returned home and helped her up. "How can I leave you like this?" he asked, hugging her. "I won't leave you… Let me bring you up to your room to rest, okay?"

And as they walked, Neji just patted Naruto on the shoulder, unable to console him. The blonde followed the cousins up to Hinata's room, staying just a little bit behind them. Neji put the girl down on her bed and was about to leave the couple alone when Hinata asked him to stay with her because she was afraid. He told her not to worry. And then she started asking about Naruto—if he had changed his appearance, if his hair had grown any longer, etc.

Neji smiled and answered, "It doesn't look like he's gotten a good night's sleep in a long while, but he's still handsome."

Hinata smiled with relief. But then the Hyuga heiress realized something. "Neji-niisan, today was so strange. Today . . . it felt like Naruto-kun was right here besides me. It was so strange… It was like he really was with me, and it _still_ feels like he's right by my side."

"It's because he's always by your side, forever and ever more." Neji answered. "Even if you can't see anymore, he'll _always_ be by your side."

Her smile grew at the sound of those comforting words, but suddenly her smile completely fell. It was then that she moved and felt around Naruto's face. She recognized him just by touch. "Naruto-kun…"

"Hinata-chan…"

He grabbed her hands, but she immediately backed away. She told him, begged him, and screamed at him to leave. She even threw pillows at him. She didn't want him to see her like that. She didn't want that, she didn't want him to know how much she was suffering…

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When he returned to Konoha the next day, he went to spar with Sasuke to clear his head, but the only thing he got was a headache. And during the middle of it, barely an hour into it, he gave up. Laying on his back, he confided in his rival about the complications in his life, leaving out the part where Hinata was blind.

And the piece of advice that the Uchiha gave him was . . . well, really something (because you usually don't hear the Uchiha saying things like this). "You know," he said, "if you ask me, there's really nothing that's changed. I mean, you and Hinata still love each other as you did years ago. You're still you, and she's still her. What's there that's different?"

And with this, Naruto got on his feet, a wonderful idea in mind. He thanked the Uchiha, promising to spar with him another day, and ran to the Hyuga household that day to speak with Hiashi. He told him about Hinata's predicament, just to make sure the old man wasn't worrying too much, and left right afterwards to speak with Sakura. But the Uchiha matriarch refused to listen to his words. She was so disappointed with him. He was making a fool of himself, hurting himself. He was even willing to give up the position he had worked all his life for. She couldn't even believe this was happening. In fact, she even wished that Hinata never even came back at all. In the end, Naruto never got a chance to tell her what was on his mind.

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Hinata had a small surgery done. It didn't take place in Konoha, though. If it had then Sakura and Shizune would have found out about her cancer and immediately would have been sent into a crazy worry fest. No, the Hyuga girl couldn't have that. She didn't want to worry anymore of her friends, like she had worried Naruto.

So now, Neji and Naruto waited outside of the room in which the operation was taking place. The two stayed quiet, ignoring the other. But Naruto was intent on changing that.

"I want to marry her," he told his love's cousin. "I want your permission."

It took the prodigy a while to process those words. He didn't know what to make of it and what he felt about it. He had loved Hinata, like a sister and perhaps more, but now . . . here was his rival asking him for his cousin's hand. He wanted to say no, he so much wanted to deny the future Hokage's request. But in the end, he could only say, "I'm not the one you should be asking. I have no say in who she marries."

"Why wouldn't you? You're the man she considers her brother. Of course, I want to hear what you have to say because your opinion _means_ something to me."

Neji could only stare at the blonde. He had never approved of Hinata's relationship with him, thinking that Naruto was never good enough for her. But hearing those words come out of his mouth, Neji couldn't help but think that he was wrong about the boy. After all, Naruto had been the one who snapped him out of the reality that the main Hyuga family was his enemy. If he could do that then how would he _not_ be able to take care of his cousin?

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She heard Neji thank the delivery man before he shut the door. She wondered what the package held as he walked over to the couch she sat on and placed a box on the table in front of her, opening it up.

"_Wow_! It's beautiful!"

Wondering about the gift, Hinata stretched out her hand and felt the satin and chiffon fabrics that made up the dress. Her eyes widened when she realized what it was. She withdrew her hand, almost as if it were a snake.

"Send it back," she told—no, _demanded_ of—her cousin.

"But—"

"I don't know what he's thinking," she continued. "How could he do this? Send the dress back, Neji-niisan."

"But, Hinata, you want this also." Neji protested. "Why would you—"

"I won't let him tie himself to someone whose future is uncertain. I won't let him do that to himself."

"That future doesn't matter. What's important now is the future you both want. He _loves_ you, Hinata."

"I love him, too, so that's why . . . I can't let him do this—to himself and to Hanabi."

The boy sighed, knowing that the girl wouldn't give in. "Alright, alright… I'll return the dress," he said. "But at least let me take a few pictures of you wearing it. It's too good an opportunity to pass up."

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"_Wow_! I had no idea it'd be such a grand party!" Hanabi exclaimed, looking around her. Indeed, Naruto had gone all out this time. He had gotten a large room of sorts—a large ballroom, perhaps—for this gathering. "I wonder what Naruto-kun's got planned. Shizune-san, Sakura-san, do you have any idea of what he has in mind?"

"I'm afraid not. In fact, both Sakura and I are here at his insistence. We don't have any idea what to make of it." Shizune smiled, but it wasn't wholeheartedly. Recently, Naruto had shirked off many of his responsibilities. In fact, a lot of his actions seemed to be on impulse. If you took his engagement for an example, it was easy to see why both she and Sakura were a bit worried. After all, tomorrow was the day he'd be getting married to Hanabi and, right afterwards, it'd be his coronation as the new Hokage. Who knew what the dobe had up his sleeve this time?

"Let's just go inside, shall we?" Hiashi said.

And though Shizune and Hanabi thought nothing of the Hyuga's rushed suggestion, Sakura wasn't as blind. Hiashi was a collected and calm man. Never before had she seen him act so pressured and anxious. And so, when the rest were inside of the room and out of hearing range, she tugged on her husband's arm with the hand that didn't hold her young baby.

"You know something, don't you?" she accused him. She knew very well that the only person Naruto confided in these days were the Uchiha.

Sasuke sighed, caressing his wife's hand. "Don't worry so much. The wedding's tomorrow, and the coronation's the next day. What's there to worry about?" he said, trying to ease her fears.

But she continued to push on. "What's he got planned _this time_, Sasuke-kun?" She'd be damned if Naruto made a fool of himself just before he became Hokage.

The Uchiha sighed once more. "Quit worrying," he told her. "Naruto has always pulled through, hasn't he? He's not a kid anymore, Sakura. He _knows_ what he's doing. Trust him a bit more. After all, with every horrid thing he's done in the past month, he's bound to do at least _one_ good thing."

Her lips pursed but, nevertheless, she gave in. "Fine…"

He stroked her cheek. "Good," the Uchiha said. He kissed her on the same cheek. "Now, come on. Everyone's waiting."

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"Is everyone here?"

"Of course."

"Even Sakura-chan?"

A small huff. "Even though it was troublesome to keep track of everyone, yes, she's here. Sasuke's just walked in with her, but she's a bit suspicious."

Silence.

"Don't get cold feet now. You've worked too hard to give it all up at this point."

". . . I know… But Sakura-chan—"

"She'll understand once you've explained it to her. She'll listen to you since there are so many people here. She won't dare to make a scene. Plus, even if she's co-ruler of Konoha, she's still your teammate first and Hinata's friend. She'll be happy with your decision as long as the both of you are happy. If not, I can always sic my wife and Sai's wife on her."

The blonde laughed. "I don't think Sakura will appreciate it much if Temari and Ino will be bothering her, what with the baby and all." Seriousness again. "And what about _her_?"

"Neji's bringing her as we speak."

Now the blonde nodded, placing a hand on the other man's shoulder. "Thanks for being my wingman, Shikamaru."

"No problem. Now go out there and win some hearts."

Again, a nod from the blonde before he pushed opened the doors into a sea of flashing cameras. (After all, without the paparazzi, how would this event even be recorded?) There was a small round of applause as Naruto made his way to the small stage in front of the room. The clapping stopped and the flashing dimmed a bit once he was behind the podium.

"Thank you for accepting my invitation and coming here on such short notice," he started. "The reason I asked you all here today is to ask for your blessings."

Again, a round of applause.

"Today, right here and right now, Hyuga Hinata and I plan to wed."

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**Okay, so this chapter's done! Hopefully, I can get the next one out soon. (But don't get your hopes up.) So yeah, please review cuz this fanfics got no reviews and all that. Thank you!**


	3. Chapter 3

-In which, people who love each other end up reuniting

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**_Finally_! I got the chapter up! Thank you for those of you who were patient enough! I'm sorry I made you wait three months, but I was really busy! My aunt's back in Singapore, and I would have updated so many more of my fanfics, but I've got three sisters to take care of and a house to keep clean, and yada yada yada. This is the last chapter which will have the format of the second chapter but then it will return to the format of chapter one, so I hope you enjoy it!**

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Chapter Three

To say that everyone in the audience was shocked or surprised was an understatement—for some like Sasuke, it was an overstatement. Unfortunately, both Sakura and Shizune (and most of the other guests) were part of the former group. They both had not realized Naruto would do something so drastic, something so dramatic. They never would have thought he would go all out on something like this. Meanwhile, Hanabi could barely contain her anger. How could he treat her like this? Embarrass her so? In front of so many people? She looked to her father for help, but Hiashi only sighed, his eyes downcast. She had never felt more betrayed.

"Sakura."

The rosette's attention returned to the soon-to-be Hokage. She didn't know what to say, how to act. The first thing that came to mind was to scold the idiot who stood in front of the crowd, but Sasuke held her hand, holding herback, his unsaid request heard. She looked up at Naruto, ready to hear him out.

The blonde took a deep breath. "Remember me saying that there was something I didn't get to tell you?" he asked, glancing at the people in the reception hall. "I'll tell you now." He inhaled another large amount of breath before continuing.

Sakura wondered why he seemed to be holding back tears.

"Hinata . . . she can't see anymore. She's lost her eyesight."

Murmurs began to pick up in the room once that again, some gasps and crying from Hinata's closest of kunoichi friends. Sakura fell back in her seat—even the infant she carried grew quiet once hearing the news—wondering how she could have missed the signs. Shizune's thoughts followed Sakura's. How could they not have noticed?

Hanabi, however, found it harder and harder to keep her temper under control. Taking a sip of cold water, she knew something bad was going to happen. Her secret… Would it be revealed here?

"She's being treated for the same disease that killed her mother," Naruto explained, more so to his friends than anyone else in the room. "But there's no telling when it'll come back." A tear rolled down his face. "Marrying someone who could die at any second, someone whose future is uncertain . . . I know that might seem reckless. That's what Hinata thinks, too. And that's why . . . she's trying to leave me." Another deep breath and a couple of more tears. "But her losing her sight doesn't make her someone else. And the uncertainty of her life doesn't change who she is. What's most important is that I love her and that I can't wait any longer. I don't want to give her a chance to run away again."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

He felt bad for tricking his cousin—the woman he considered his sister—like this, but he knew that, in the end, she'd be happy. Happy with the man that she loved. That was all the really mattered right here and now. It was his duty to get her to the event but, as they approached the building, he paused and turned to his cousin, asking to hug her. She smiled, finding it silly that he'd ask and allowed him to do so. She felt him shake—was he crying?

"From now on, no matter what, you have to fight for your happiness. You understand?" he told her. "Don't let it be taken away from you."

Her smile remaining on her face, she nodded. She ignored the little voice in the back of her head, telling her that it was strange that Neji was saying these things.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"It's taken my bride-to-be a long time to come to me. The journey has taken too long. But at last, we want to be together. She's on her way here now, and I hope _none_ of you will stop her from coming to me." His last sentence almost sounded like a threat.

It was then that his attention was turned to the entering duo. Everyone followed his line of vision, and murmurs once again picked up as Neji guided Hinata into the room. Silence filled the air between Konoha 11, taking in the helpless expression painted on the bride. Hanabi's teeth gritted together. Her fury increased only when her father strutted towards her older sister.

Neji, once seeing his uncle walk towards them, unclasped his hands from Hinata's unwilling fingers and stepped aside. He bowed his head to which Hiashi returned with a nod. The middle-aged man then preceded to holding his daughter's hands.

At first, Hinata didn't know what to make of this but, after caressing the man's hands and the wrinkles on them, her eyes widened if not by a little. "Otou . . . san?" she asked, unsure if she was correct or not. She knew Neji would never leave her in the hands of a stranger, but she doubted herself. Just where was she?

He nodded, wishing his daughter could have seen that, a cry struggling in his throat. "Yes…" he answered. "It's me, Hinata."

"Where am I?" she asked, wondering where Neji had brought her. "What is this place?"

Hiashi sighed, his eyes watery. He hated how feeble, how scared, his daughter sounded and looked. "I'll take you to the one who loves you the most."

Her body went rigid. What did her father mean by that? Was Naruto . . . was he _here_? What was this place? Why did she feel so many eyes on her? Her dread escalated once her father handed her a bouquet. She almost froze to the spot she stood but, when her father guided her down the aisle, she found herself walking too. They stopped soon, and her father released her hands, but she continued reaching out of them. Why was he leaving her here? Don't let go, she wanted to cry. Her worries subsided once another pair of hands grabbed hers.

". . . Na . . . _Naruto-kun_?"

His calling out her name was all the confirmation she needed. She wanted to ask him what this place was, but he was already answering it.

"Hinata, this is our wedding."

Her lavender-tinted eyes grew with revelation. How could she have been so gullible? All the men in her life—Neji, her father, and her love—they all were in on this. They all tricked her into coming here. She wanted to run, wanted to get out of there, but Naruto's grip was tight on her hands.

"Don't run from it." It almost sounded like a plea. "Everyone came to give us their blessings . . . even all of our friends."

Hinata relaxed at those words. All of their friends…? Even Sakura? She wanted to ask how many people were there, who were there. She almost contemplated on going through with this.

"THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!" Hanabi stood from her seat, her anger evident from the decibels her voice had taken and from the expression fitted on her face. "Naruto, how dare you make a fool of me! What are you trying to do? How could you do this to me?" She ignored her father's entreaty to stop her nonsense. "I am your _fiancée_! Yet you make me a fool _in front of all these people_? I can't go along with this wedding! It's null and void!" Her temper got the better of her as she flipped over the table she had been sitting at, the silverware on it falling to the floor and the glass shattering. Cameras began flashing then. This was sure to make tomorrow's front page.

"In fact, you knew about this, didn't you?" she asked her father. She then turned on Sakura who had been seating with them. "Sakura-san, were you in on it too?" She looked feral now, as if she were going to attack the woman holding her wailing baby. If Sasuke and Shizune hadn't been standing next to the rosette, Hanabi would have slapped her. "Was I the _only one_ in the dark?" She was shrieking by this point, walking over to her sister. "I can't accept this wedding!" She took Hinata by the shoulders and began to shake her. She almost succeeded in this, if it had not been for her father who held her back. "I'm going to sue you two for defamation of character!"

"You don't have the right to say that," Neji spoke up.

"_YOU STAY OUT OF THIS_!"

"What happened to Hinata's eyes is your fault," her cousin revealed. "She lost her eyes because you tried to _kill_ her five years ago! You betrayed your own sister!"

The younger Hyuga heiress scoffed, ignoring the gasps from the crowd. "Ha! No one here is going to believe _you_!"

"But there's me!"

Everyone's heads whipped around to the man walking in.

"It's been a long time," he not only addressed Hinata and Hanabi but the rest of the Hyuga family as well. "I'm Kou, Hinata's former bodyguard!" he told the audience. "As a member of the Hyuga clan, I didn't want to say this, but there are things a person just can't tolerate." He paused before continuing. "Hanabi, didn't you come to me five years ago, saying you had accidentally killed someone and asking me to hide a corpse?"

"It _wasn't_ a corpse!" She gasped but, by the time Hanabi realized her mistake, it was too late.

"No, it was an unconscious Hinata!"

"That's enough!" Hinata yelled. Regardless of what Hanabi had done, the girl was still her sister, still family. She couldn't stand by as others ridiculed her. "Please stop!"

"NO, you have to hear this too, Hinata!" Kou argued. "She brought you to me, covered in blood, begging me to hide you, saying she didn't want to go to prison. She abandoned you like that and split. And I found out only later that she made it look like you were dead. Unless she tried to kill you intentionally, she couldn't have done what she did. Isn't that true?" He clicked his tongue, sighing. "I really wasn't going to say this. But everyone, look at Hinata. How could I keep quiet? After what Hanabi's done to her… You wicked woman! You're not even human!"

"SHUT UP!" Hanabi grabbed the nearest glassware and threw at him. "Those are all lies! _Lies_!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Hanabi, continuing to deny everything, was dragged out of the room by ANBU guards (led by Kakashi). But despite that setback, Naruto pressed on, asking Sakura for her blessings then. It seemed at first she wouldn't but, when she clapped her hands and smiled, her answer was clear. As was everyone else's when they joined in the applause. Hinata was never happier. She could not see her father crying, asking himself how he could be so blind as to not see the bitterness between his two daughters.

Shikamaru, though complaining about how troublesome it was, did the honors of joining the couple together. Naruto's answer came out quick but, when it came Hinata's turn, she hesitated. Once Shikamaru asked again, Naruto told her to answer, whether her answer was yes or no. She gave a firm, "I do."

Naruto was never a happier man.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Neji knew he had done the right thing, watching as Hinata received congratulations and hugs from her friends and family after her wedding. She had been crying tears of joy, unable to compose herself. But when he had read the newspapers the next day, he couldn't help but cry in sorrow. He hadn't wanted to put Hanabi in jail. She was still his younger cousin, no matter what. He wondered how and why she turned out so bad. He couldn't believe it turned out like this.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

He visited the happy couple days after their honeymoon. Naruto had to return to the Hokage mansion to make the last few preparations for his coronation, and so he had asked Neji to watch Hinata while he was out. Needless to say, the Hyuga-now-Uzumaki had been glad that it was her cousin who Naruto had chosen. She wouldn't have taken it lightly if Naruto had invited a stranger.

She confided with Neji her wishes once Naruto was gone. She knew she didn't have that long to live, but she wanted to see Naruto's face just one last time before she had to go. She so desperately wanted that.

And with that in mind, Neji just smiled when he told Hinata that he was to go to the Land of Lightning to help with diplomatic relations.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

It was the day after Naruto had become Hokage that Shizune sent a messenger hawk to him. They had found a donor for Hinata. And upon rushing to the hospital, Hinata was prepped for surgery, Sakura being the head surgeon for the operation despite being again pregnant.

Naruto almost danced in the hallway, but his mood fell once he saw Iruka come to him, his lips pressed into a grim line. His former teacher handed him a note and a bloodied headband. Hyuga Neji was in the morgue, a suicide, because the hospital could not accept live donors.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Naruto arranged for a small funeral the next day, inviting only Neji's genin team. Tenten and Lee had both cried. Gai had never felt prouder of his student, sacrificing his life for his cousin's joy. They kept quiet when Hinata entered the room. Naruto wanted to honor Neji's last wishes and continued with the illusion that Neji was still on his mission. Hinata had no clue who gave her their eyes, but she thanked him still, for her wish could be granted now. She promised she'd only look at beautiful things with her new eyes.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Once Hinata was able to take off her bandages, she had cried when the first person she saw was her husband. Her wish was finally granted. She could see again.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Naruto held a party for her on her birthday, all of their friends there. It was the first time in years since Konoha 11 had gotten together like that, and everyone was in a joyous mood. It was almost too good…

Hinata fainted in the middle of it. And when Sakura checked on her condition, the rosette could only gasp. She didn't know how to tell Naruto, and she didn't need to. He already knew just from her expression.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Hinata refused to take the operation. Why should she even take it? There was only a fifty percent chance that she would live, the other fifty percent that she'd die during it. She refused. She refused because she didn't want to die in a hospital. She didn't want that. She didn't want to die just like her mother. And she didn't want to take the risk of shortening her life any more than it already was.

Naruto continued to pester her about it, begging her to take the operation. She might live, and he would do anything to prolong her life, their time together. He even accidentally let it out that Neji had been her eye donor. And as expected, Hinata had not taken that well. She had run from Naruto then, ran to find her cousin, only to find Naruto's story to be true.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

She had had enough of crying, she had told her husband. She didn't want to spend the rest of her life bawling out her eyes. She had made Neji a promise, only to see beautiful things with her new eyes. And that, she would do. She wanted to spend her remaining days with her husband, her love. She didn't know how long she had, but she would do it. She wanted to die a happy woman, and she wanted to be in the arms of her loved one when that happens. She wouldn't die in a hospital. She would live out her days with no regrets, and she would fight for her happiness, just as her cousin had told her to do so.

* * *

_"Love is something that returns."_

_"People who love each other always end up reuniting."_

* * *

**And _done_! Whew! I kind of rushed through it, but I hope you all still enjoyed it! It took me a long while to actually come up with everything in this chapter since I had to decide what to take out and what to leave in. It's hard, especially with a show like _Naruto_. Please review!**


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